Understanding the World: Free Association, Directed Thought, and the Nature of Creativity

Note: Research and ghostwriting by LLM AI, shaped by my fevered brain. No LLM AI were harmed in the production of this essay, although I was tempted. – Ephektikoi

Thoughts Just Bubble Up, Don’t They?

Context

Creativity is a mysterious and often unpredictable force. It can strike out of the blue, or it can be painstakingly coaxed into existence. But where do these creative thoughts come from, and how do they form? My experiences with creativity, spanning decades, have given me some insight into these questions, though the answers remain as elusive as ever.

Thoughts, Bubbles, and Soda Pop

Thoughts can be like bubbles in a carbonated drink, rising up from somewhere deep within our minds and bursting into our consciousness. Sometimes they appear spontaneously, with no clear connection to anything else we were thinking about. This bubbling up of ideas is akin to free association, where one thought leads to another in an unpredictable chain. I once wrote a couple of tongue-in-cheek articles on what I called the "soda pop theory of consciousness," exploring how our thoughts fizz and pop in ways that can seem entirely random.

But not all thinking is like this. Sometimes, our thoughts are more directed, carefully guided by our intentions. This is where directed thought comes in—when we're focused on a task or a problem, and our ideas follow a more structured path. Even within this more deliberate mode of thinking, there's still room for those unexpected bubbles of inspiration to surface.

My Long Journey with Creativity

Writing has been a part of my life for decades, dating back to the 1960s when I first began scribbling down my thoughts to scratch a creative itch. Over the years, I've written extensively on a wide range of topics. I've penned many articles on Information Systems, martial arts, guitar playing, basic music theory, songwriting, and science and philosophy for laypeople—though I suspect my audience skews toward the nerdier side. I've also written an unpublished book on the CAGED guitar system. Were these good articles? Some people say yes; others, not so much.

My early writing process was hands-on. I would jot down ideas on index cards or even sheets of paper, cut them up, and then physically arrange them to form the structure of an essay. I would also draw associative lines between ideas on paper, essentially mind mapping before I had ever heard of the term. When software for mind mapping became available, I used it for years before eventually moving exclusively to tables. The process was always iterative—I would often find myself jotting down the same idea multiple times, even after it had been somewhat organized. Tables became my go-to method for recording, sorting, and organizing my thoughts. I developed a workflow that worked for me, though I’m sure others have their own methods.

Later in life, I began telling stories to children. These stories weren't anything special—more along the lines of DuckTales or Archie Comics—but they were entertaining enough for the preteens who listened, particularly my daughter and her friends. However, as they grew older, they outgrew the stories. The last story I remember telling was during a car trip with my daughter when she was 15. We were driving on a back road that was taking longer than expected, and to pass the time, I made up a story for her. I don’t recall the details of the story, just the experience of creating it on the spot, something that harkened back to my earlier storytelling days.

The Role of Technology in Creativity

Over time, I began to integrate technology into my creative process. Initially, I used word processing tools to organize and sort my ideas, creating tables to help me structure my thoughts. Later, I turned to speech-to-text technology, which allowed me to capture ideas quickly before they evaporated like so many bubbles in a soda.

When Large Language Model (LLM) AI became available, it revolutionized the way I approached writing. I found that AI could serve as both a research assistant and a ghostwriter, enabling me to produce content faster and, in some ways, better than before. While the quality wasn't always consistent, the speed and efficiency were undeniable. I admit to feeling a bit guilty, maybe even ashamed, about relying on AI, especially when I know so many others who do it the old-fashioned way, putting in the legwork to write and research on their own. I know several serious authors who do just that, and it sometimes feels like I'm taking a shortcut. But the truth is, I can hardly type anymore. It's kind of embarrassing for an old computer nerd, but I have structural problems with my hands, coordinative problems with my brain, and memory issues. And let's not even talk about how I've forgotten how to spell. Thank the lord for the backspace key and spell check.

More recently, I started experimenting with music AI. This technology allowed me to hear my tunes brought to life with ingenious melodies, better backing, and generally excellent voices. It opened up new creative possibilities, letting me explore different genres and styles. However, despite these advancements, my songwriting process hasn't fully reignited. The ideas are there, but they haven't materialized into complete songs.

Creativity in Overdrive

While my songwriting might be stalled, my creativity in other areas is flourishing. Thanks to AI, I find myself writing more than ever—sometimes several times a day. The ideas come fast and furious, and the AI helps me turn them into tangible pieces of work. Yet, there's always that lingering question: am I prioritizing quantity over quality? Perhaps, but creativity is subjective, and what one person values might not resonate with another.

Conclusion

Creativity is a complex and sometimes fickle process. Whether through free association or directed thought, our minds generate ideas in ways that can be both surprising and frustrating. My creative journey, from writing to storytelling and back again, has led me to embrace AI as a tool to enhance my work. The tools and methods have changed over the years, but the essence of creativity—those bubbling thoughts that rise to the surface—remains a constant. In the end, the creative process is a journey, one that evolves over time, with the balance between quality and quantity differing for everyone.